The woman’s confident expression suddenly faltered.
‘Oh, that would be me,’ Kitty interjected sweetly before Alejandro had a chance to speak. ‘When I’ve had enough of him she’s welcome to have him back.’
She heard Alejandro’s sharply drawn breath and braced herself. Was he finally going to tell her to go now?
But he drew her closer still. It wasn’t an unconscious, almost undetectable gesture now. ‘But sweetheart,’ he breathed. ‘It’s my job to ensure you’ve never had enough.’ He turned to the woman. ‘If you’ll excuse us, I’d like to get Catriona a drink. I think she needs one.’
‘How many times do I have to tell you—it’s Kitty?’ she muttered as he held her hand tightly and drew her through the crowds with him.
He smiled back at her and his hand tightened. ‘What will you have?’
She was aware of everyone watching them as he led her through the room. ‘Got any cyanide in the champagne?’
‘I’ll save you some for later, when it’s time to face your—how do you say?—fate worse than death.’ He looked pleased with himself at that.
‘I already told you, that’s never happening.’
He stopped in the centre of the room and faced her, apparently uncaring that everyone was staring, and positively hauled her right into his arms. ‘No? Not even a kiss to say sorry?’ Slowly and deliberately he brushed his thumb across her lower lip. ‘Methinks the lady doth protest too much.’
‘Methinks the asshole doth have an outsize ego.’
He gazed at her, his expression delighted. He couldn’t have looked more proprietorial. Or more smitten. But his whispered words were so sarcastic and his awareness of her unbelievably smug. He was enjoying her discomfort hugely. She could tell by the unholy gleam in his eyes, but every touch made her acutely aware of him and his magnetism grew stronger.
She pulled back and made him keep walking.
So. Not. Happening.
It was his reputation that made her so aware of him. All that history, the list of conquests—the world’s most beautiful, desired women. But it wasn’t only that. There was no denying his physical perfection and the supreme assuredness that went with it.
It was impossible to look away from him for long. She’d never met anyone like him and she’d met plenty of wealthy, entitled people in the course of her life. But if you were to strip all those people bare of their designer dresses and jewels and outsize bank balances, many would fade into nothingness. Not Alejandro. Buck-naked in a bull ring he’d still conquer all. And she had the feeling he intended to conquer her. He thought he already had.
He had another think coming.
The awareness of the guests was even more apparent now. She felt the heat from a zillion hard gazes and fought to keep the polite smile on her face. She wasn’t going to lose her confidence. She was going to keep her head high and weather these last couple of hours. But she was quieter as she stood alongside Alejandro, her hand still firmly bound in his, as he talked work with a couple.
That was when she recognised two of the women on the far side of the room. A small British contingent seemed to be standing together. Kitty’s heart sank—of course they’d be there. Those two were like pearl hat pins—ultra pretty but with a sharp point they liked to stick into someone given the chance. She hadn’t seen Sarah in months, but she didn’t imagine she’d had a personality transplant in that time. The woman was a childhood chum of James’s—one who’d never approved of his engagement to Kitty and she was with another couple who were also very much ‘team James’. And great, they’d spotted her too and were circling closer like a school of sharks honing in for a feeding frenzy.
‘Kitty Parkes-Wilson!’ the first exclaimed loudly.
‘Hi, Sarah.’ Kitty smiled, turning to angle herself slightly away from Alejandro. Given he was engrossed in discussing the prospects of another hedge fund, she crossed her fingers he wouldn’t hear this conversation—because if anyone here was going to be predictable, it would be this woman.
‘Fancy seeing you here this week of all weeks.’ Sure enough, Sarah launched her first salvo in a loud chime.
‘You mean in my former family home the week we lost possession?’ Kitty smiled through her teeth. ‘Funny how life works, isn’t it?’
‘Oh, it is,’ Sarah answered as she glanced at Alejandro’s hand curling around Kitty’s despite the fact he was facing the other couple. ‘I never thought you’d be another of Alejandro’s notches,’ she ‘whispered’ conspiratorially.
‘I’m not!’ Kitty flared at the thought and replied swiftly before thinking better of it. ‘I’m only here because he’s bullied me into staying.’
Sarah’s eyebrows lifted and she laughed a little too loudly. ‘Bullied?’ Her pointed laugh chimed loudly again. ‘Yeah, it really looks like that.’
Was it Kitty’s imagination or had Alejandro tensed?
‘We haven’t seen you in so long,’ Sarah added when Kitty didn’t elaborate. ‘You left London in such a hurry.’
The woman was such a cow to bring that up. Of course she’d left in a hurry. She’d been hurt. She’d just found out James hadn’t wanted her at all. He’d only wanted the wealth he’d assumed came with her. And when he’d found out all the cold hard cash had gone, he hadn’t bothered to break up with her before searching the field for her replacement. He’d been trying them all out behind her back. Now, barely six months later, he was engaged to another woman. A beautiful, wealthy one who didn’t seem at all bothered about his cheating past.
This time Kitty didn’t imagine the sensation. Alejandro’s fingers definitely tightened about hers again. But he didn’t break his conversation and turn towards her.
‘You’re finally over James then?’ Sarah queried.
She knew it hadn’t been her fault, but it still hurt. She’d truly thought he loved her. That he’d got her, and found her attractive. But it was only the money he’d loved. And she’d been so starved for attention, so desperate to believe that a guy finally wanted her, she’d not seen through his fickle facade.
She’d been such a fool. And she was a fool now for letting this woman get to her.
Because she was too angry.
She straightened, channelled her inner Great-Aunt Margot and rewrote the rules.
‘Oh, yes.’ Kitty smiled sunnily at Sarah. ‘You know, I didn’t want to make things public yet,’ she ‘whispered’—every bit as loudly as Sarah had. ‘As you’ve alluded to, it has been a stressful week.’
Sarah’s eyes widened and she leaned closer. ‘Make what public?’ This time her volume really did lower.
‘Our relationship,’ Kitty answered as if it was obvious.
‘Your...’ Sarah’s jaw slackened in shock, then she almost squeaked. ‘You mean with Alejandro? You’re why he bought this house? He bought it for you?’
It
